Nasal dilators, both internal and external, which act on the outer wall tissues of the nasal passages, are well known. For example, external nasal dilators are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,533,499, 5,533,503 and 6,318,362 to Johnson. These nasal dilators comprise a truss member having a first end region adapted to engage the outer wall tissues of a first nasal passage and a second end region adapted to engage the outer wall tissues of a second nasal passage. The first and second end regions are coupled to one another by an intermediate segment. The intermediate segment is configured to traverse a portion of the nose located between the first and second nasal passages. A resilient element or spring member extends along the length of the truss member. The spring member, when the truss is secured in place, acts to stabilize the outer wall tissue and thereby prevent the outer wall tissue of the first and second nasal passages from drawing in during breathing.
In one known nasal dilator embodiment, such as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,318,362, the resilient element may consist of a pair of resilient bands. The first resilient band is secured to run along the length of the nasal dilator truss member. The second resilient band is spaced apart from the first resilient band and is also secured to run along the length of the nasal dilator truss member. The first and second bands are relatively stiff and are oriented generally parallel to one another and substantially parallel to the longitudinal extent of the nasal dilator. The resiliency of the first and second bands prevents the outer wall tissues of the first and second nasal passages from drawing in during breathing.
While great strides have been made in understanding basic external nasal dilation, further improvements are needed. Less force to obtain similar dilation, more efficacious adhesive elements or novel dilation forces are potential areas of opportunity for improvement. Up to this point the majority of nasal dilators have exerted force either in a direction orthogonal to the lateral wall of the nose or parallel to the bridge of the nose. In this invention, significant force in a new direction is defined for nasal dilation, providing for novel force distributions on the nose to improve dilation.